Claes Nobel with Atlanta member Pharra Perry at The Carter Center member event

Dear NSHSS Family,

I continue to be heartened and encouraged by the dedication and achievement of our Society members as NSHSS moves into its fifth year. The past four years since I helped to found this group have been busy and rewarding. Some of the highlights I experienced as your Chair in 2006 include introducing the World Scholar-Athlete Games held at the University of Rhode Island, a truly extraordinary gathering of young people from around the world learning about each other and paving the way for peace. I had another opportunity to reach out to youth globally by delivering the commencement speech to the graduating students in the School of Law at Griffith College Dublin and spending time with Nobel Peace Laureate Dr. John Hume there. Most memorable of all was traveling to Australia with a group of NSHSS students who learned together, lived together, and kept me young each day with their enthusiasm and joy in our adventure together. And I was overwhelmed at the gathering of so many of our members and their families at our Holiday program in Atlanta last month at The Carter Center. We are grateful to Emory University for hosting this program, which brought together college admissions officials to meet and advise our students. I was especially touched to be able to read to the group a personal letter addressed to our members from President Jimmy Carter, whom I met in Oslo when he received his Peace Prize in 2003. He welcomed our NSHSS family to the Center and congratulated everyone on their hard work and achievements, wishing them all a wonderful new year.

As we move into 2007, even with all of the challenges facing our planet and people, I am hopeful when I see and hear of the great determination and dedication of our youth to make the world better. I am so gratified to hear of our Claes Nobel Scholarship Recipient and Student Council member Shannon Babb having the opportunity to attend the Nobel Prize festivities recently because of her prize-winning environmental research--be sure to read her account in this publication. And member Robert St. John Schreier led such an intriguing Eagle Scout service project uniting Christians and Jews in his community that he drew the attention of Pope Benedict XVI. His project begun in Colorado echoed all the way to the Vatican in Rome!

I commend these and all of our members, who strive to make use of their talents and forge a better future for us all. I hope to meet many more of you throughout this year, and look forward to our next programs hosted by The University of Oklahoma on February 17 and the University of California, Santa Barbara, on March 3.

In Service to Earth and Humanity,
Claes Nobel